Shoe heel



M July 21, 1953 J. G. BALLASCH SHOE HEEL Filed Dec. 14, 1951' FIG. 4

INVENTOR JOSEPH s. BALLASCH,

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ATTORNEY Patented July 21,1953

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SHOE HEEL Joseph G. Ballasch, San Diego, Calif.

Application December 14, 1951, Serial No. 261,658

1 Claim.

My invention relates to a shoe heel, more particularly a replaceable shoe heel that may be turned to various positions for equalizing wear, and the objects of my invention are:

First, to provide a shoe heel which may be moved or revolved to various positions and latched in the changed position. I

Second, to provide a shoe heel of this class when latched in position provides a solid, immovable shoe heel in any of the various positions.

Third, to provide a shoe heel of this class with a base conforming with the shoe heel which is secured to the shoe sole at the heel portion.

Fourth, to provide a shoe heel of this class which provides for taking care of the run-over heels and the worn portion at the back of the heel by shifting of the'wearing portion.

Fifth, to provide a shoe heel of this class which is substantially anchored to a base member which is substantially anchored to the shoe sole at the heel portion.

Sixth,-to provide a shoe heel of this class which is very simple and economical of construction, easy to install, easy to operate and which will not readily deteriorate or get out of order.

With these and other objects in view as will appear hereinafter, my invention consists of certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts and portions as will be hereinafter described in detail and particularly set forth in the appended claim, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the char acters of reference thereon which form a part of this application in which:

Fig. 1 is a lower side view of the heel base member; Fig. 2 a side elevational view showing the shoe sole at the heel portion in dash line; Fig. 3 is a lower side view of the removable heel member; Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the assembled heel taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3 substantially longitudinally of the shoe at the heel portion and; Fig. 5 is a top view of the latch for the heel member, and Fig. 6 is a top elevational view of the removable heel, showing the slotted openings arranged in circumferentially spaced rela-- tion and illustrating the manner in which the locking key is disposed diametrally to lock one of the screws or headed members and prevent angular displacement of the shoe heel relative to the base member.

In the drawing, and more in detail, there is shown for the purpose of illustration a portion of a shoe counter and sole (dotted lines, Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive) to show the manner in which principal part and portions of my shoeheel. The I principal portions of my shoe heel are prefer ably made of the rubber substitute neoprene.

The rear portion of the shoe sole is rounded (Figs. 1 and 2) and the base member I is secured to the sole by a series of circumferentially spaced screws 2, the heads of which project a slight distance beyond the lower surfaceof the base I (Fig.- 2). The base member" I is circular in form andjof a size to fit the shoe sole at the. heel portion and tapered so that thelower: side is substantially horizontal. In this case I have shown 5 in equally andcircumferentially spaced relation and spaced from distance from the periphery of the heel base on substantially "the same radii. These screws are screwed into the base with their heads spaced'sub'stantially of an inch from the face of'the base i, and they may be screwed through the basev memberand into the sole, andin addition the base member I may be secured to the sole portion at the heel by pegs or other similar means. The heel member 3 is provided at its normally upper side at the periphery with a thin ledge 3a, which is arranged to fit around and over the base member I as shown best in Fig. 4 of the drawings; This heel member 3 is also provided with a circular cut-away portion 3b, in which is mounted the supporting membervor plate 4 and spaced from the periphery of said heel member. This supporting member 4 is preferably thin metallic plate and it is provided with a plurality of rivet holes in equally and circumferentially spaced relation some distance from its periphery and adapted to receive the rivets 5 for riveting the supporting member 4 securely in position. The rivets 5 are supported in the heel member provided .with the heads 50. and the holes in the heel member are plugged by means of plugs 6 which may be of neoprene or other rubber substitute. Interposed between rivets 5 and equally spaced from each other some distance from the periphery of thev supporting'member 4 are a plurality ofpea'r shaped slots 4a. These pearshaped slots 4a are adapted to receive the screw heads of the screws 2 and when the heel member is revolved onthe-base slightly the narrow portion of the slots receive the screw portion of the screw and thus latch the heel member securely on the base, due to the fact that the narrow portions of the slots extend in a circumis adapted to receive one of the rivets and the.

rivet 5 forms a stop for the sliding to and fro movement of the latch member 1. This latch member I is also provided with a slot 12) extending inwardly from one side thereof near the large end which i adapted to receive one of the screwheads of the screws 2 and is provided with an open narrower portion 1c which permits the screw portion to pass through so that when the latch member I is moved to the position as shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings, the heel member is free to turn but when the latch member is moved inwardly as shown in Fig. 3 so that the ends are flush with the heel portion, the straight side edge of the latch member 1 toward the large end will engage the screw and prevent the heel member from turning. a

It will be noted that the base member I at its lower side is shaped to fit and conform with the shoe sole at the heel portion some of which are concave and tapered.

In order to disengage the latch, a screw driver or the like is inserted in one end of the slot 30 in the heel to move the latch diametrally as shown in Fig. 6. After the latch is thus displaced so that the entrance portion 1c is in registry with the adjacent screw 2, the heel 3 is angularly displaced to position the heads of the screws 2 in alinement with the opening 1b in the latch I. With the heel and slots in this position, the heel can be removed and turned through an arc to place the worn out portion of the heel in another position when the heel is again assembled.

Though I have shown and described a particular construction, combination and arrangement of parts and portions, I do not wish to be limited to this particular construction, combination and arrangement but desire to include in the scope of my invention the construction, combination and arrangement substantially as set forth in the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

In a detachable and shiftable shoe heel, a circular base member adapted to be afiixed to a shoe sole at the heel portion thereof, a plurality of circumferentially spaced headed members mounted in said base with the heads thereof spaced slightly from said base member, a removable and shiftable heel member provided with a series of correspondingly shaped slots having enlarged entrance openings adapted to receive said heads and permit the heel to be angularly displaced so that the headed members are received in the narrower portions of said slots for securing the heel member to the base, a shiftable latch member extending through a diametrical slot in the shoe heel and having a restricted opening extending inwardly from one side thereof arranged to register with one of the entrance openings of the slots in the heel when said latch is in its projected position, said latch being arranged to lock one of the headed members in the narrower portion of one of the slots when the latch is in its retracted position wherein its opposite ends are flush with the heel member.

JOSEPH G. BALLASCH.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 684,515 Lane Oct. 15, 1901 895,924 White Aug. 11, 1908 1,673,452 Hegedus June 12, 1928 1,825,202 Pudin Sept. 29, 1931 2,208,260 Hayden July 16, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 171,893 Germany June 21, 1906 

